Mullin Continues To Make St. John’s Truly NYC’s Team

When Chris Mullin took over as Head Coach of the St. John’s Red Storm two years ago, he vowed to recruit more top prospects from New York City schools.

Mullin, a New York City product out of Xaverian High School who then went on to star at St. John’s in their heyday in the 1980s, did it immediately by bringing in Shamorie Ponds and Bashir Ahmed, who had great freshman seasons last year.

St. John’s continued that trend by recently announcing the signing of Sidney Wilson.

Wilson is a 6-foot-7, consensus four-star wing from the Bronx who starred at St. Raymond’s and the Brewster Academy in New Hampshire. He is rated as high as No. 19 in the nation at his position for the Class of 2017.

“There’s no place like home,” said Wilson. “St. John’s and New York City is home to me. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play at The Garden and for my city.”

Mullin said of the meaning of the Wilson signing, “Our vision for the future success of this program relies heavily on keeping top local talent at home. The addition of Sidney Wilson to our roster for the upcoming season bodes well not only for the future of St. John’s, but also for basketball as a whole in this city.”

Wilson spent his senior year at national powerhouse Brewster Academy in New Hampshire, where he helped lead the Bobcats to the 2017 National Prep Championship and NEPSAC (New England Prep School Athletic Council) Class AAA title. A First Team All NEPSAC AAA and First Team ALL-USA New Hampshire honoree, Wilson averaged 18 points and five rebounds during Brewster’s perfect 33-0 campaign under head coach Jason Smith.

One of Wilson’s marquee performances came in the National Prep School Championship semifinals, as he scored a team-high 19 points, helping Brewster become the first team to go undefeated in NEPSAC AAA since 1998.

“Sidney is an explosive player with great athleticism who can excel in our style of play,” Mullin added.

Previously starring at St. Raymond in the Bronx, Wilson scored more than 1,000 points in his first three years of high school ball playing for head coach Jorge Lopez. Wilson was named First Team All-CHSAA (Catholic High School Athletic Association) as a junior in 2015-16, leading the Ravens with 17 points per game. As a sophomore, Wilson posted 14 points and nine rebounds per outing in 2014-15 and was named Second Team All-CHSAA.

Wilson was a member of the New Heights AAU program, which participates in the Under Armour Association circuit, playing for head coach Rahme Anderson. During the summer of 2016, he averaged 17 points and six rebounds per contest while leading New Heights to the UAA Finals and an 8-4 record. Wilson was also invited to several prestigious camps in 2016, including the Pangos All-American Camp in Norwalk, Calif., Under Armour All-American Camp in Charlotte, N.C. and the Under Armour Elite 24 showcase in Brooklyn.

St. John’s brings back its top four scorers next season in Ponds, Ahmed, Marcus LoVett and Federico Mussini, and returns 83 percent of its scoring offense. Wilson will be one of three first-year Johnnies to make his debut in Queens, along with transfers Marvin Clark Jr. and Justin Simon, who are expected to bolster a program that had a six-win improvement in Big East play last season.